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Offender Learning

NOCN and Employability Skills for Offenders

The National Open College Network and Open College Networks (OCNs) have had a long association with offender learning and its accreditation. Our flexible programmes and qualifications that can be adjusted to fit the context have been both welcomed and widely used within the offender learning environment.

The unitised structure of our qualifications provides small packages of learning that can be delivered in limited time frames. In the prison context, where transfers in and out are a daily occurrence, the use of NOCN qualifications to certificate small chunks of learning reduces the risk of offenders moving on without receiving certification of the skills they have developed. The extensive use of NOCN qualifications in custody also allows continuity and means they do not have to repeat learning but instead, build on what they have already achieved.

The NOCN qualifications currently used for offender learners include Qualifications for Progression, ESOL Skills for Life Qualifications, Art & Design Qualifications and Financial Literacy Qualifications.

The NOCN Qualifications for Progression are ideal for the offender learning environment. These Qualifications are approved by the regulators, are on the National Database of Qualifications and are eligible for LSC funding in England and funding in Wales and Northern Ireland. They are available in Award, Certificate and Diploma size and at four levels (Entry 3, Levels 1, 2 and 3). They provide a unit and credit based offer that can be used to support the development of employability skills and progression into further training. With generic work skills and specific vocationally based preparatory units these qualifications are proving useful in giving learners the confidence to move forward in their chosen areas. The certificates also provide evidence to employers of the skills they have developed, their commitment to learn and their work-readiness.

The NOCN Qualifications for Progression are already widely used to recognise the learning that is delivered through Offender Learning and Skills Service (OLASS) contracts, as well as the skills offenders develop in the industries, workshops and other “out of scope” areas in prisons. Through the Probation Service the Qualifications are used with offenders completing community sentences (unpaid work) where they acquire important and useful vocationally-related skills through community-focused activities that can then help boost their employability.

The use of a national system that encompasses local/regional responsiveness is invaluable. There are named experts in the OCNs who are available to offer support for practitioners. This extends beyond curriculum advice to the provision of staff development in areas of assessment, quality assurance and standardisation.

A rapid turnaround system of registration and certification for offender learning providers ensures that credit certificates and transcripts are issued promptly and learners receive immediate recognition for their achievements.

Criminal Justice Management magazine (CJM) September 2008

National Open College Network (NOCN) is the leading credit-based awarding body in the UK. Chief Executive Professor Jill Brunt explains the thinking behind their flexible accreditation system for offender learning programmes. To view the article and find out more click here.